Instant reaction to Week 13 developments …
1. Salt Lake City thriller
We’ll start our recap at the end — not the end of the day or the end of the season but the end of a career.
It’s not official, of course. But if that wasn’t Utah coach Kyle Whittingham’s final stalking of the Rice-Eccles Stadium sideline, well, consider us flabbergasted.
Following the most entertaining game of the Big 12 season, a 51-47 victory over Kansas State, the 66-year-old Whittingham acted and sounded like a man who knows retirement is just weeks away.
And it should be. Unless Utah wins the Big 12 championship or a College Football Playoff game, it’s all downhill from here for Whittingham. There won’t be another game like the one he witnessed Saturday.
“That was one for the ages,” he said. “You can’t dream that up.”
The Utes won despite allowing 472 rushing yards. the most by a Division I team in a loss in eight years (Army, to North Texas).
They won despite giving up touchdowns of 24, 37, 66 and 80 yards — all on the ground.
They won despite trailing by 12 points midway through the fourth quarter.
And they won because of a play that you “can’t dream up.”
After a touchdown pushed its lead to 47-35 with seven minutes remaining, Kansas State attempted a two-point conversion. Quarterback Avery Johnson’s pass into the end zone was tipped and intercepted by Tao Johnson, who returned the pick 100 yards for two points.
Instead of facing a 14-point deficit, the Utes trailed by 10. That made all the difference in the world.
(Adding to the drama: A penalty flag was thrown on the play, then picked up without assessment or explanation.)
“If that play doesn’t happen, it’s probably a different outcome,” Whittingham said.
From there, the Utes scored with three minutes remaining and again with one minute remaining, then intercepted Johnson in the final seconds to seal the stunning victory.
Next up for Utah (9-2): The College Football Playoff rankings on Tuesday evening.
The Utes were 12th last week, two below the cut line. But given Utah’s immense struggle against a sub-.500 opponent and the dominant wins by No. 13 Miami and No. 14 Vanderbilt, we can’t help but wonder if the selection committee will drop the Utes a spot or two.
Then comes the regular season finale Saturday at Kansas.
Sure, the Utes should win comfortably, but we thought they would win comfortably today, as well.
Take care of business, and the worst case is a 10-2 finish that would certainly clear Whittingham’s standard for success and, we presume, allow him to ride into retirement at peace with the state of his program and the season it produced.
2. Surprising clarity
Let’s stay in the Big 12, a conference known for mayhem that could produce an efficient, clean finish thanks to BYU’s victory 26-14 at Cincinnati.
Texas Tech will advance to the conference championship with a victory next week at floundering West Virginia.
The other spot will go to the Cougars as long as they defeat UCF (in Provo). That shouldn’t be problematic. The Knights struggled with Oklahoma State on Saturday and are winless on the road.
Put another way: Barring at least one massive upset, the conference championship will feature a rematch of Texas Tech’s blowout victory over the Cougars in Lubbock, a 29-7 beatdown earlier this month that was worse than the score suggests.
Nobody wants to see the teams play again, except BYU … and, we suspect, Texas Tech.
3. Big game, little drama
Meanwhile, the most anticipated game of Week 13 unfolded in the Pacific Northwest, where USC visited Oregon in what amounted to a playoff elimination game.
The result was predictable, a 42-27 Oregon victory in which the Ducks controlled the line of scrimmage just as so many top-tier teams have controlled the trenches against the Trojans.
USC averaged 1.9 yards per rush, was terrible on special teams and never had possession in the second half when trailing by a touchdown or less. Each time the Trojans pulled within one score, the Ducks responded with points of their own.
Oregon (10-1) doesn’t control its destiny in the Big Ten. But if the Ducks beat Washington next weekend and Michigan topples Ohio State (entirely plausible), they would advance to Indianapolis.
Whether that’s the optimal outcome is another matter, because a victory over Indiana would put Oregon in line for a top-four seed in the CFP — and the opening-round bye.
Meanwhile, a loss in Indianapolis could push the Ducks down to the No. 9-12 seed range and an opening-round road game.
The Ducks would be better off beating Washington and not playing for the Big Ten title. That way, they would be virtually assured of the No. 5-8 seed tier and hosting a playoff game.
That’s right: A home playoff game would be more desirable for the Ducks than a Big Ten championship.
4. Rinse, wash, repeat
Stop us if you have heard this before: Lincoln Riley-coached team possesses stellar receivers and a talented quarterback but musters zero ground game, is ineffective defensively and loses on the road to a quality opponent.
Yes, the Trojans are marginally better than they were last season. But they remain a level below the best teams in the Big Ten — and isn’t the entire point of USC football to compete for championships?
Year 4 of the Riley era will come and go without a conference title or playoff berth, and that requires some context. Over that same span, at least 22 schools will have competed in the CFP (including the newcomers this year), but none of them answer to the name USC.
In fact, Indiana will participate in the CFP twice before the Trojans make their first appearance.
Riley will be back next season (unless he decides to leave). USC simply isn’t positioned to fire a coach following an eight- or nine-win season, especially when said coach is purportedly owed in excess of $75 million.
And his return assuredly will sit well across the Big Ten.
5. Brutally bad Bears
As this column readies for public viewing, a few minutes past midnight, Justin Wilcox remains Cal’s head coach.
And he probably will keep that title for another week.
But after the season finale against SMU, the Bears could be shopping for a replacement.
They were awful in the game that matters most, losing 31-10 at Stanford on Saturday night and relinquishing the Axe for the first time since 2020.
That’s right, the Bears were beaten decisively by an opponent that had just three wins to its name and possessed one of the worst offenses in the FBS.
But Cal, which plays to the level of its competition like few teams in the country, had three turnovers, mustered just 12 rushing yards and committed 13 penalties.
It was an embarrassing performance for a coach whose program started the season 4-1 but has lost four of its last six.
GM Ron Rivera makes no secret of his desire to take the next step, to eight or nine wins and a top bowl game.
But at best, the Bears will win seven and land in the Sun or LA Bowl.
That might not be good enough for Wilcox to return for his 10th season, especially after the abomination at Stanford Stadium.
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